The White House

Тhe White House at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is the home and office of every U.S Presi­dent except George Washington who laid the cornerstone in 1793. It is based on a design by James Hoban. In the White House the pressing business of government is being con­ducted. The White House is museum of American history.

The White House is constructed /1800/ of white sandstone. In 1814, the House was burnt by the British. Later the charred remains of the building were whitewashed. Since then the House has been always painted white.

The White House has 132 rooms; 54 rooms on the second and the third floors are reserved for the First Family.5 of the rooms are open to the public. They are the Blue room, East Room, Green Room, Red Room, and State Dining Room.

A million visitors go through the White House every year free of charge. Visitors are not allowed in the rooms where the President lives and works. But occasionally the President stops by to greet tourists in the public rooms.

Most visitors to the White House enter through the East Wing Lobby. They walk through the East Garden Room to the glass-enclosed colonnade that leads to the Ground Floor of the White House. The col­onnade was Constructed in 1902. Along the colonnade visitors have a view of the Jacqueline Kennedy Garr den. A massive bronze bust of Abraham Lincoln rests in a wall niche. Beginning in 1994 sculpture exhibitions have been held in the Garden.

Ground Floor Corridor * is made of marble. There are busts of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and other outstanding Americans. There are portraits of First Ladies.

The Library room served as a laundry until 1902. In 1935 it was remodeled as a library. The li­brary is furnished in the style of the Federal period. Five portraits of American Indians flank the east door. The paintings were given to the White House in 1962.

The Vermeil Room /Gold Room/ serves as a display room. There are a Turkish carpet, French mantel and portraits of Jacqueline Kennedy, Anna Roosevelt and Patricia Nixon.

The China Room was designated by Mrs. W. Wilson in 1917 to display the collection of White House china. There is the painting above the mantel "View on the Mississippi".

The Diplomatic Reception Room serves as an entrance to the White House. It is furnished as a drawing room of the' Federal period /1790-1820/.

The Map Room was used by President Roosevelt as a situation room to follow the course of World War n. Now it serves as a private meeting room

for the President or the First Lady. It was decorated in 1994 as a sitting room in the Chippendale style.

STATE FLOOR

The North Entrance includes the Entrance Hall* and the Cross Hall*. They are decorated with the portraits of Presidents.

The East Room* was designated as the "Public Audience Room". It is used for large gatherings. The grand piano with gilt American eagle supports was given to the White House in 1938. There is a full-length portrait of George Washington.

The Green Room* was intended to be the "Common Dining Room". On the sofa table are several historic pieces of Presidential silver. Portraits of two presidents hang above the doors.

The oval Blue Room* contains furnishings in the French Empire style. There are a settee and seven gilded chairs. There is a portrait of President W. Taft sitting in the Blue Room.

The Red Room* is one of the four state reception rooms. A portrait of Angelica Singleton Van Buren, Presidents Van Buren's daughter -in-law and official hostess, hangs above the mantel. The furni­ture in the Red Room dates from the years 1810-1830.

The State Dining Room* seats 140 guests. Its table is surrounded by Queen Ann-style chairs. The Family Dining Room has 8 chairs of furniture from the Federal period.

The East Sitting Hall is lemon-yellow. The Clintons have personalized the room by using their own carpet. In front of the fan window stands a mahogany sofa made in 1800. Above the desk hangs "Flor­ida Sunrise" by M. Heade /1819-1904/.

The Queen's Bedroom is named for its many royal guests including Queen Elizabeth II and Prin­cess Ann. It is decorated in shades of rose and white. There is a four-poster bed in it.

The Lincoln Bedroom is decorated with American Victorian furnishings. It is used today as a guest room for friends of the President's family.

The Treaty Room is now President Clinton's second-floor office and sitting room in the Resi­dence. The walls are covered to simulate red leather.

The Center Hall is brightened by a yellow-and-white color. It serves as a drawing room for the First Family and Presidential guests. There are octagonal pedestal writing desk, the Boston sofa table, chair back settee and four matching chairs in the Center Hall.

The Yellow Oval Room was the place of the first White House reception on New Year Day, 1801. There are a rare set of four carved armchairs and a writing table there. It serves as a formal drawing room for the President's family. The room gives access to the Truman Balcony. The balcony offers $

panorama of the Washington Monument, and the Jefferson Memorial. First Families use the balcony for dining, and viewing Fourth of July fireworks.

The President's Dining Room serves as convenient place for family meals. It is furnished in American Federal style. It includes the Sheraton pedestal dining table and side chairs with Prince of Wales plumes made in 1800. There is a coffee set with ivory handles made in Paris.

The West Sitting Hall serves as a private living room for the Clinton family. Here Mrs. Roose­velt presided over the traditional morning coffee with family. "Morning on the Seine" by Claude Monet, hangs on the north wall. It was given to the White House in 1963 by he Kennedy family in memory of President John Kennedy.

The West Wing was built in 1902.The West Wing Reception Room was created in 1969. Staff meetings and press conferences take place in the Roosevelt Room. The room contains the gold medallion presented to Theodore Roosevelt in 1906 when he received a Noble Prize. The Cabinet Room is used for meetings with the Department Secretaries and Congressional leaders.

The President's Oval Office reflects each change of administration dramatically. Most Presidents fill it with personal mementos, such as the photographs of family and friends. The desk chosen by Presi­dent Clinton was given to President R.Hayes /1877-81/ by Queen Victoria in 1880. There is the coat of arms in a specially woven oval carpet. Above the mantel hangs a portrait of George Washington in Con­tinental Army uniform. There is a bronze bust of Benjamin Franklin there. On the south wall hangs "The Avenue in the Rain" by Childe Hassam. It is a picture of American flags displayed along Fifth Avenue.

The Rose Garden is used by the First Lady to receive her guests. The Rosen Garden often serves as a reception area for the President. The first team of United States astronauts was received in the Rose Garden. It serves as the setting for state dinners. Roses were first planted here by Ellen Wilson in 1913. Flowers provide color from early spring until frost comes.

/An asterisk g marks rooms open to the public/

Дата добавления: 2015-11-16